Circuit breaker

Abstract

A high performance, manually and automatically operable, trip-free magnetic circuit breaker incorporates a housing having housing parts secured together by external mounting clips to achieve better electrical characteristics, to permit reliable assembly with reduced risk of housing damage during assembly, and to facilitate mounting of the breaker on a control panel; and incorporates a modular structure permitting adaption of the breaker for use in a variety of breaker applications while minimizing circuit breaker costs.

I claim: 
     
       1. A housing for an electrical control device having control means mounted within said housing, said housing comprising a pair of housing sections having locating surfaces thereon, said housing sections being fitted together with the locating surfaces of the respective sections in engagement with each other for defining a housing chamber between the sections, each of said housing sections having exterior surface portions thereon defining a cam surface spaced relative to the locating surfaces of the section, a guide surface, and a detent surface, and clip means fitted over said exterior surface portions of the pair of sections engaging guide surfaces of the respective sections for positioning the clip means on the sections, engaging detent surfaces of the respective sections for retaining the clip means on the exterior section surfaces, and engaging cam surfaces in the respective sections for securing the sections together with a predetermined force. 
     
     
       2. A circuit breaker comprising a pair of housing sections having locating surfaces thereon, said housing sections being fitted together with the locating surfaces on the respective setions in engagement with each other for defining a housing chamber between the sections, contact means movable in the chamber between an open circuit position and a closed circuit position, operating means extending from the chamber to be manually movable between corresponding open and closed circuit positions, control means mounted in the chamber for moving the contact means between said open and closed circuit positions in response to manual movement of the operating means and for automatically moving the contact means to said open circuit position on the occurrence of a predetermined condition in the breaker circuit, each of said housing sections having exterior surface portions thereon defining a cam surface spaced relative to the locating surface of the section, a guide surface, and a detent surface, and clip means fitted over said exterior surface portions of the pair of housing sections engaging the guide surface of the respective section for position the clip means on the sections, engaging the detent surfaces of the respective sections for retaining the clip means on the exterior section surfaces, and engaging the cam surfaces of the respective sections for securing the sections together with a predetermined force. 
     
     
       3. A circuit breaker as set forth in claim 2 wherein said exterior surface portions of the housing sections define locking slot means in the exterior surfaces of the sections, and the clip means have locking tabs thereon deformed into the locking slot means of the respective sections locking the clip means on the exterior surfaces of the sections. 
     
     
       4. A circuit breaker as set forth in claim 3 having openings between said housing sections and having abutments formed on the exterior surfaces of each of the sections adjacent the respective openings, and having terminals means extend from said contact means through said openings, said terminal means having tabs thereon deformed around pairs of said abutments in the respective sections adjacent the openings securing the sections together at said opening. 
     
     
       5. A circuit breaker comprising a pair of housing sections of a dielectric material each having a principal wall and having edge walls upstanding from said principal wall, said housing sections having locating surfaces thereon and having said edge walls fitted together with said locating surfaces in engagement with each other for defining a housing chamber between the sections, contact means movable in the chamber between an open circuit position and a closed circuit psoition, operating means extending from the chamber to be manually movable between corresponding open and closed circuit positions, control means mounted in the chamber for moving the contact means between said open and closed circuit positions in response to manual movement of the operating means and for automatically moving the contact means to said open circuit position on the occurrence of a predetermined condition in the breaker circuit, said housing sections each having recess configurations formed on exterior surface portions thereof and having pairs of said recess configuration on the respective sections disposed in contiguous relation to each other, each recess configuration on each section defining a cam surface on an edge wall of the section spaced relation to the locating surfaces of the section, defining a slot forming a detent abutment on an adjacent edge wall of the section, and defining a guide surface on the principal wall of the section, and metal clip means fitted within each pair of contiguous recess configurations over exterior surface portions of the pair of sections engaging a pair of guide surfaces of the respective sections for positioning the clip means on the sections, engaging a pair of detent abutments of the respective sections for retaining the clip means on the exterior section surfaces, and engaging a pair of cam surfaces of the respective sections for securing the sections together with a predetermined force. 
     
     
       6. A circuit breaker as set forth in claim 5 wherein each of said recess configuration further defines a locking slot in the section, and the clip means have locking tabs thereon deformed into locking slots of the respective sections locking the clip means on the exterior surfaces of the sections. 
     
     
       7. A circuit breaker as set forth in claim 5 wherein the metal clip means disposed in each pair of contiguous recess configurations on the housing sections comprises a metal clip having a top sheet having a cam slot in one edge of the sheet and being disposed with the ends of the slot engaging cam surfaces on the respective sections for securing the section together with said predetermined force, having guide portions depending from opposite sides of said top sheet engaging respective guide surfaces on the respective sections for positioning the clip on the sections, and having a detent portion depending from the top sheet with a slot in the detent portion fitted over a pair of detent abutments in respective sections for retaining the clip on the exterior surfaces of the sections. 
     
     
       8. A circuit breaker as set forth in claim 7 wherein each of said recess configurations defines a locking slot on the exterior surface of the principal wall of the sections, and each guide portion of the clip has a locking tab deformed into locking slots on the respective sections locking the clip on the sections. 
     
     
       9. A circuit breaker as set forth in claim 8 wherein each of said recess configurations defines clearance cavity means on the exterior surface of the section, and the clip has a threaded mounting hole therein aligned with said cavity means for use in mounting the circuit breaker on a control panel. 
     
     
       10. A circuit breaker as set forth in claim 5 having openings between said housing sections and having abutments formed on the exterior surfaces of each of the sections adjacent the respective openings, and having terminal means extending from said contact means through said openings, said terminal means having tabs thereon deformed around pairs of said abutments on the respective sections adjacent the openings securing the sections together at said openings. 
     
     
       11. A circuit breaker as set forth in claim 5 wherein said operating means extends from one end of said housing chamber and said recess configurations are disposed on the exterior surfaces of the housing sections with said cam surfaces being disposed at said one end of said housing chamber for permitting the clip means to secure the housing sections together at said one end of the chamber and wherein said chamber has openings extending therefrom between the housing sections at the opposite end of the housing chamber, said housing sections have abutments form in each of the sections adjacent the respective openings and has terminal means extending from the contact means through said openings, said terminal means having tabs thereon deformed around pairs of said abutments on the respective sections adjacent the openings securing the sections together at said opposite end of the housing chamber. 
     
     
       12. A multipole circuit breaker comprising a plurality of housing sections of a dielectric material each having a principal wall and having edge walls standing out from said principal wall, said housing sections having locating surfaces thereon and being fitted together in sequence with the edge walls of adjacent sections in the sequence fitted together with each other and with the locating surfaces of adjacent sections in the sequence in engagement with each other for defining a plurality of housing chambers respectively located between adjacent pairs of the sections in the sequence, contact means movable in each of the chambers between an open circuit position and a closed circuit position, operating means extending from each of the chambers to be manually movable between corresponding open and closed circuit positions, control means mounted in each of the chambers for moving the contact means therein between said open and closed circuit positions in response to manual movement of associated operating means and for automatically moving the contact means in the chamber to said open circuit position on the occurrence of a predetermined condition in the circuit formed by the contact means, said housing sections each having recess configuration formed on exterior surface portions thereof and having said recess configurations on each of the sections at the ends of said sequence defining a cam surface on an edge wall of the section spaced relative to the locating surfaces of the section, defining a slot forming a detent abutment in an adjacent edge wall of the section, and defining a guide surface on the principal wall of the section, and metal clip means fitted over surface portions of the sequence of sections engaging the guide surface of the respective end sections in the sequence for positioning the clip means on the sections, engaging the detent abutments on the respective end sections in the sequence for retaining the clip means on the exterior section surfaces, and engaging the cam surfaces on the respective end sections in the sequence holding the sequence of sections together with a predetermined force. 
     
     
       13. A multipole circuit breaker as set forth in claim 12 wherein the metal clip means comprises at least one metal clip having a top sheet portion having a cam slot in one edge of the sheet, said top sheet being disposed with the ends of said cam slot engaging the cam surfaces on respective sections at the ends of the sequence of sections, having guide portions depending from said top sheet portion engaging guide surfaces on respective sections at the end of the sequence of sections, and having a detent portion depending from the top sheet portion fitted over detent abutments on respective sections of the end of the sequence of sections. 
     
     
       14. A multipole circuit breaker as set forth in claim 13 wherein each housing section disposed between a pair of adjacent housing sections in said sequence has a single principal wall and has edge walls standing out in each of two opposite directions from said single principal wall to be fitted together with edge walls of said adjacent housing sections. 
     
     
       15. A multipole circuit breaker as set forth in claim 14 having openings between each pair of adjacent sections in said sequence of sections and having abutments formed in the exterior surfaces of each section adjacent the respective openings, and having terminal means extending from the contact means in each of said chambers through the respective openings, said terminal means having tabs thereon deformed around pairs of abutments adjacent each opening securing pairs of the sections together at said openings. 
     
     
       16. A multipole circuit breaker as set forth in claim 15 wherein said housing sections define clearance cavity means in the exterior surfaces of said sequence of sections and said metal clip has threaded mounting hole means aligned with said cavity means for use in mounting the multipole circuit breaker on a control panel.